Campbell Awards Winning “Hacker”

Campbell Soup Company has announced Pollinate Inc. as the winner of Hack the Kitchen, ahackathon designed to help home cooks everywhere answer the age-old question, What’s for Dinner? Judging took place at Google in New York City on Friday, March 22, 2013. The competition winner receives a $25,000 prize and a $25,000 contract to make their idea come to life.

Winners of Hack the Kitchen

Campbell opened the contest up to developers in the U.S. for creative ideas for the ultimate What’s for Dinner? mealtime solutions. Campbell made the Campbell’s Kitchen API available to the semi-finalists to build creative search-based recipe applications for web, mobile and tablet devices. CampbellsKitchen.com is an online recipe resource with more than 3,000 recipes that use Campbell’s Condensed soups, Swanson stocks and broths, Prego Italian sauces and other Campbell products.

Nearly 150 entries were narrowed down to six finalists that presented their ideas to the judges in front of a live audience.

Pollinate Inc., a team of 12 members, developed the winning app fittingly titled FoodMood. Finding that there are plenty of recipe services that sort results based on ingredients or popularity, this app adds a different dimension to the dinner selection process, helping consumers find recipes based on their mood.

“This was the first time Campbell reached out directly to the developer community, as we felt that partnering in this way allowed us to tap into the capabilities and expertise of others to accelerate innovation,” says Adam Kmiec, Director, Digital Marketing and Social Media, Campbell Soup Company. “We couldn’t be more excited about working with Pollinate Inc. to develop the next great app that helps everyday cooks solve the daily mealtime dilemma.”

A panel of judges comprised of Campbell Chief Marketing Officer, Senior Vice President Mike Senackerib, LockerGnome founder Chris Pirillo, and BuzzFeed Associate Food Editor Rachel Sanders, chose the winner based on their knowledge of the brand, app development and scores against contest criteria. Campbell expects this new mealtime solution to be launched in time for soup season.